What's Forever

Chapter 46

I miss having these big family meals, my family used to do them all of the time. It's been too long since I've seen my brothers and I can't go to my parent's graves unless I hop on a plane, so I'll happily take this. As much as I appreciated going to the Cullen's house, it's not like we can sit around a table and enjoy a meal together.

"Can I hold her?" Leah asked after dinner.

"Of course, go ahead."

I watched as the girl carefully picked up my daughter and the look in her eyes made me sad, there was such pain there. She was a little awkward at first but it came pretty easily to her after about a minute or two.

"You ever think about having kids?" I asked her.

"I thought they were in my future but not anymore." she said.

"You're still young, you never know what life's gonna put in your way. I sure didn't think about having a child when I got pregnant." I told her.

"You didn't want kids?"

"I wanted to finish my medical career first. Chris and I were best friends but we weren't in love. We used to joke around about how we would get married if we were still single at 30 and we did try dating but it just wasn't there for us."

"But you were intimate?"

"We were because at that time, we were both busy with school and not really interested in dating so we relied on each other to ... scratch that itch and that's how Ava came to be. We did love each other but we weren't in love with each other." I told her.

"I was in love." she whispered and I saw the sheen of tears in her eyes. "I loved him and I thought he loved me. We were gonna get married and have a family and be happy together until we grew old. Then he started keeping secrets and pulling away and ... he said he didn't love me anymore. It was for her, I hate them. He left me for my cousin and I hate that they're happy because I'm miserable." she sniffled.

"That's ... a lot, and it's very shitty." I told her.

"That's an understatement." she replied with a watery chuckle.

"I'm sorry that happened to you, it really sucks. They're both horrible people."

"How can they be so happy knowing that they broke me?"

"They didn't break you." I said.

"They did though, they broke my heart and my spirit." she said as a single tear rolled down her cheek.

"That pain is momentary, it'll last as long as you let it break you."

"What? How can you say that? I have to see them every day, see them look at each other with love and adoration! Even after what happened to her, he still looks at her like the sun rises in her eyes and he never looked at me like that. I have to see them like that!"

"Yes, you do, that's a fact. Another fact is you control the way you react to it. This situation will break you as long as you let it, don't let it. Focus on you, focus on finding who you are without him, what makes you happy. Don't let them affect that, don't let them control how you live your life or how you live your happiness." I told her.

"It's not that easy." she sighed, handing me Ava before walking away.

"I'm sorry, she's not the easiest person to talk to right now." Sue sighed from behind me.

"She's going through a tough time." I said.

"Are you just a teenage therapist?" she chuckled lightly.

"I know stuff and I've been through stuff, nothing like her but, if I can help her then why wouldn't I?"

"You're too good of a person, Valentina. Who makes you happy?" she asked.